Of Lies and Hidden Truths
by NeonFury
Summary: There is a strange compulsion for him to remain and just talk to the man. Perhaps, it is just pity rearing its head. After all, the man has been imprisoned for years. Or, maybe, he is just curious to learn the whys behind it all. Ash visits Giovanni years later.


A sole light bulb flickers quietly in the center of the room, casting the occupants in a soft yellow glow. There is a long plain table dominating the area with two chairs at each end. One of the chairs is occupied and the other is not. Instead, the future occupant stands hesitantly by the door. His name is Ash and he is not sure why he has come here. Why now, after all of these years, is he compelled to see the man before him? A man who had lost everything after he had taken his crime organization down? The former head of Team Rocket?

This is not the man from his memories. Gone is the proud, intimidating man in the orange suite. In his place is a shadow of the man. This man has spent years in isolation, rarely seeing the sun. His jailors could not risk placing him with others because half the people in this jail were once his underlings. The risk of an uprising would be too high and, with this man's intelligence behind them, the prisoners might just exceed in escaping. This was assuming that the other prisoners did not try to kill him instead. Hence, there had been no other option, but to isolate him. Such was this man's fate.

Giovanni's face is gaunter than before and much, much paler. His hair is greying and there are more lines on his face than Ash remembers. His yellowing prisoner outfit hangs just a bit too loosely off of his frame as the man leans forward, resting his chin on his folded hands. Despite his tired appearance, his eyes remain the same as they had all those years ago: dark abysses with a terrifying intelligence behind them. His cunning had not dulled behind bars.

Hesitantly, Ash joins the man at the table. He pulls out his chair, observing the heavy shackles on Giovanni's wrists; shackles that appear to be rubbing the surrounding skin raw. They have not been removed in a long while and Ash absently wonders what Giovanni did to result in that restriction. Giovanni's eyes track his movements in silence before he rasps,

"Have you finally come to gloat, Ketchum?"

His voice is rough from disuse and it almost hurts Ash's ears to hear it. A part of him, the kind part that he had inherited from his mother, feels bad for the man, but he does not let it show. The ex-crime boss would not take pity well and this meeting would end before it had even begun. While there is no real purpose behind Ash's impromptu visit, he finds that he wants to stay just a bit longer.

There is a strange compulsion for him to remain and just talk to the man. Perhaps, it is just pity rearing its head. After all, the man has been imprisoned for years. Or, maybe, he was just curious to learn the _whys_ behind it all. Whatever the reason, Ash will see this through. He shakes his head slightly,

"That is not why I am here."

Giovanni raises an eyebrow in surprise. Placing his hands on his lap, he leans back in his chair. His shackles rattle ominously, breaking the silence of the room.

"Oh? Then why, _pray tell_ , are you here?"

Ash shifts awkwardly in his chair, unsure of what to say. A pregnant silence fills the room with only the humming of the light interrupting it. After a few more moments, it becomes evident that neither of them are going to speak up. Giovanni is merely waiting for his response and Ash has none. None that sounds sane anyways. The "I was just walking by and made a spur of the moment decision to come see you" did not seem like a rational reason. It certainly is not one he would have accepted if he had been told that.

Eventually, Giovanni moved as if to get up out of his chair, clearly fed up with the pointlessness of their interaction. Panicked, Ash stood up quicker, his chair screeching backwards.

"Wait! I need… I need to know why you did it. Why did you do all of those terrible things?"

A ghost of a shadow passes over Giovanni's face and disappears just as quickly as it had come. In its place, a cruel smirk forms on thin lips. However, the smirk does not reach his eyes. The man had a good poker face, but Ash had learned over the years to read people better than most. Travelling the world and facing the threats that he had confronted along the way had long ago forced him to learn that vital skill.

"Because I could."

The answer is simple enough, but it is not the answer Ash wants to hear. It is not the resolution he wants nor does it fit with the man's previous expression. He narrows his eyes. Bitterly, he grinds out,

"That's it? Because you _could_?"

Suddenly, the man seems like his old self. Proud and very, very dangerous. He crosses one leg on top of his knee, leans back, and laughs. Laughs like his life depends on it. Idly, Ash wonders if the man has finally snapped behind these grey walls. Snapped and gone completely insane. He is not sure if he wants to know.

"What better way is there to show how insignificant people are? To show the pathetic dependency the world has on Pokémon? There is no other way than to take away the source of this dependency! To destroy it at its roots! There is no better way to show my power over others!"

Giovanni is staring at him now, oddly calm. His words show conviction, but they sound hallow. Almost as if he had said them a thousand times, but still does not quite believe them himself. Doubt fills Ash. Giovanni's actions and words say one thing, but Ash's gut feeling tells him another. Something tells him that this is not the truth. That there is more behind the answer given. Perhaps, there was an outside influence controlling Giovanni way back then? It is hard to imagine such a possibility.

When it comes to the criminal before him, Ash has trouble picturing him doing anything besides sitting behind a desk and evilly plotting. In general, it is hard to imagine Giovanni having a life at one time. It is even more difficult to picture him as a human being with aspirations, motivations, and feelings. Yet, the more he regards the man before him, the easier it becomes to imagine such a thing.

"That's the reason you stole all those poor Pokémon and destroyed countless people's friendships? To break an imaginary dependency and show your power?"

Giovanni continues to stare at him unnervingly.

"Yes."

His voice is cold, colder than Ash has ever heard it before. He meets the others man's flinty eyes with a hard look of his own. He decides to trust his instincts and determinedly says,

"I don't believe you."

Giovanni breaks eye contact for the briefest of seconds before shrugging. It is enough.

"Believe what you will."

This meeting is not going the way Ash had pictured it coming into it. First, he had expected Giovanni to outright refuse to see him. Instead, here he is before him, having a relatively civil conversation, circumstances allowing.

His second expectation was that Giovanni really was a cruel and heartless man with no other motivation than to gain power and cause pain. Yet, there are multiple indications that this may not be the true motivator. There was some hidden reason behind it all. Unfortunately, there is very little chance that Ash will ever find it out. At least, not yet. Ash calmly remarks,

"Perhaps, Giovanni, you will tell me later."

Giovanni looks disbelieving for the briefest of seconds before it is replaced by a menacing glare. This is all the confirmation Ash needs. There is more to this tale than what has been said. The older man sneers,

"I grow tired of you, boy. Leave me."

Obligingly, Ash walks towards the door, feeling darks eyes watching him move. He does not face him as he says,

"I will see you again so don't get too comfortable."

Without a backwards glance, he exits the room, missing the look of surprise directed him. The look and the small smile that formed unbidden.

"We shall see, Ketchum, we shall see."


End file.
